Flour-sifter



UNITED ySTATES NATHANIEL W. FOYE, OF OAMBPIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS.

PATENT OFFICE.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 49,870, dated September12, 1865.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, NATHANIEL W. FoYE, of Gambridge,.in the county ofMiddlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented an ImprovedFlour-Sifter, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, inakingpart of this specification, in which- Figure l is a plan of my improvedsifter. Fig. 2 is a transverse section through the same on the line a::vof Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the same, the brush-shaftbeing removed. Fig. is a central longitudinal section through the same.Fig. 5 is a view of the removable brush-shaft detached.

That class of Hour-sitters now iu use, where the our is rubbed over asieve by means of a revolving shaft provided With beaters or rubbers,are objectionable on' account ot' the central rubbing-shaft not beingmade easily removable, thereby rendering it difficult to clean it or thesieve beneath.

My invention has for its object to overcome this difficulty, andconsists in making the rubbing-shaft removable and providing it at oneend with a disk or head to prevent the escape of the flour, by whicharrangement the operation of cleaning the sifter is greatly facilitated.

To enable others skilled in the art to understand and use my invention,I Will proceed to describe the manner in which I have carried it out.

lu the said drawings, A is a box or hopper, which is supported on legsa, and has attached l to its lower end a sieve, B, of a curved form,

as seen in Fig. 2.

C 1s a shaft, at one end of which is a journal, b, which revolves in theend of the box A,

while its opposite end is furnished with a disk or head, D, having ashoulder, c, which ts snugly VInto and revolves in a circular opening,

E, Fig. 3, in the end of the box A. The shaft C is held in place bymeans of a pin, d, and Washer, e, and is provided With brushes f runningspirally around it, which serve to agltate the flour, as the shaft isrevolved by means of the handle g, and rub it across the sieve, causingthe finer particles to pass rapidly through, the spiral form of thebrushes, serving to carry theour longitudinally across the sieve. Thesebrushes f are made to rub' against the sieve B,.

which is thus prevented from becoming easily clogged; they also yield oncoming into contact with any hard substance, thereby preventing thesieve from being pierced or otherwise injured.

The opening E is of greater diameter than the shaft C, so as to admitthe brushes f; and it will be seen that this opening is tightly closedby the shoulder c of the head D, thus eiectually preventing the'escapeof the iiour.

When it is desired to clean the sifter after using, or in the event ofits becoming clogged, it is simply necessary to remove the pin d and,Washer e, when the brush-shaft maybe readily drawn outthrou gh theopenin g E, thus greatly facilitating the operation of cleaning both thebrush-shaft and the interior of the sifter.

rEhe brushes f, instead of running spirally around the shaft, may, ifpreferred, be placed in parallel rows, or run in any desired direction.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,is-

'lhe removable rubbing or brush shaft C, with its shouldered head ordisk D, in combination With the box or hopper A and sieve B,substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

y N.- W. FOYE. Witnesses P. E. TEsoHEMAcHEE, W. J. CAMBRIDGE.

